Two Men Sentenced To 3 Years In Prison For Card Skimming Across NoVA

WASHINGTON, DC – Two men have been sentenced to more than 3 years in prison over a scheme to install and operate skimming machines at point-of-sale terminals across Northern Virginia and use the stolen information to fraudulently withdraw funds from victims’ bank accounts.

According to court documents, Adrian Vasile Marin, 36, and Sorin Postolache, 37, each pleaded guilty to 1 count of conspiracy to commit access device fraud and 1 count of aggravated identity theft. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia says the two were sentenced to 3 years and 3 months in prison on Wednesday.

According to court documents, Marin and Postolache admitted to installing skimmer devices that collect credit and debit card information across the region in 2024 and 2025. They installed devices on self-checkout terminals at CVS Pharmacy stores in Burke, Fairfax, Warrenton, Vienna, Front Royal, Gainesville, Springfield and Annandale, through which they stole at least 67 card numbers. They then used stolen information to withdraw at least $55,150 from various customer accounts via Navy Federal Credit Union ATMs around the region.

During a search of the men’s homes and storage units, officers found more than $100,000 in cash and more than 2,880 card numbers or access devices.

Both used fake passports and identity cards to rent mailboxes to receive the equipment they used to build the skimmers. Marin used the identities David Malek, Mario Castelano, Oliver Hannes, Peter Rene, Tomas Ivanek and Toni Vesa. Postolache’s fake identities included Paul Weber, Peter Zimmit, Peter Zammit and Tom Inberg.

According to law enforcement affidavits, the men lived in Brooklyn, NY, and received equipment at mailboxes in Brooklyn and in McLean, VA.

The two men are Romanian nationals. The New York City Police Department assisted with the investigation, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.